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The 2026 cross country season may have just come to a close, but it is never too early to start looking ahead to 2027! Illinois Running News is excited to release our Way Too Early 2027 Cross Country Rankings, giving fans an early look at the teams that could make some noise next fall. These rankings take into account several key factors, including performances from the 2026 season, returning varsity talent, graduating seniors, and the potential impact of incoming freshmen. W

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Girls Individual Rankings 1 Kara Glenn Jr St. Charles North 2 Karlin Janowski Jr Elmhurst (York) 3 Victoria Tarara Jr Barrington 4 Angelica Hil Sr Barrington 5 Miriam Eynon So Winnetka (New Trier) 6 Marlie Czarniewski Sr Plainfield North 7 MacKenna Kerpan So Edwardsville 8 Avery Hacker Sr Batavia 9 Ashleigh Forbes So Barrington 10 Tessie Bradley Sr Park Ridge (Maine South) 11 Madeline Serur Fr Arlington Heights (Hersey) 12 Athena Triner Jr Yorkville 13 Haylie Simpson Fr Rockt

Girls Individual Rankings 1 Emaline Foster Jr Crystal Lake (Prairie Ridge) 2 Ali Londrigan Sr Chatham (Glenwood) 3 Lyla Plaisier So Elmhurst (Timothy Christian) 4 Nora Wedwick Jr Rockford (Boylan) 5 Elena Mamminga Sr Wheaton (St. Francis) 6 Paityn Brady Jr Springfield (Sacred Heart-Griffin) 7 Anneke Dam Jr Crystal Lake (Prairie Ridge) 8 Erin Hinsdale Sr Wheaton (St. Francis) 9 Anniston Huff Sr Mahomet-Seymour 10 Lillian Chaddock So Peoria (Notre Dame) 11 Kaitlyn Pergande Fr E

Girls Individual Rankings 1 Isabella Keller Sr Effingham (St. Anthony) 2 Kasyn Jibben So Havana 3 Haven Barwegen Fr Kankakee (Bishop McNamara) 4 Dusti Smith Sr Toulon (Stark County) 5 Aubrey Denning Sr Effingham (St. Anthony) 6 Jana Vande Kemp Sr Cambridge 7 Klarke Goranson Jr Manteno 8 Lydia Woody So Springfield (Lutheran) 9 Emalyn Millar Jr Aledo (Mercer County) 10 Joelle Wilson Sr Williamsville 11 Madeleine Fox Sr Marshall 12 Leah Shoaff So Shelbyville 13 Elyse Brinkmeyer

Week 9 Team Rankings 3A Boys New Team Old 1 Plainfield South 1 2 Winnetka (New Trier) 3 3 Palatine (Fremd) 4 4 Elmhurst (York) 5 5 Downers Grove North 2 6 Frankfort (Lincoln-Way East) 6 7 Hinsdale Central 7 8 Mt. Prospect (Prospect) 8 9 Chicago (Lane) 11 10 Arlington Heights (Hersey) 10 11 St. Charles North 9 12 Lake Zurich 15 13 Naperville Central 12 14 Park Ridge (Maine South) 13 15 Chicago (Mather) 16 16 Plainfield North 14 17 Naperville (Neuqua Valley) 18 18 Libertyville

Week 9 Individual Rankings 3A Boys New Name Grade Team Old 1 Santiago Chavez Sr Burbank (Reavis) 1 2 Samuel Hill Sr St. Charles North 2 3 Samuel Assefa Sr Chicago (Lane) 3 4 Karanveer Patil Jr Lake Zurich 7 5 Dylan Buturusis Sr Plainfield South 4 6 Jesse Gudauskas Sr Naperville (Neuqua Valley) 5 7 Alex Batsala Sr Plainfield South 6 8 David Moore Sr Palatine (Fremd) 8 9 Stephen Cox Sr Downers Grove North 20 10 Elliot Batz Sr Rock Island 9 11 Henry Miller Sr Hinsdale Central 11

1A Kankakee (McNamara) Writer: Brodie Peterson The boys race shows off some decent talent with Holden Gerdes of Fairbury Prairie Ridge, ranked 12th in 1A, battling it out with 1A #15 Joe Faris of Dwight. Following close behind them will be Evan Benoit of Herscher. All three of these guys have been having killer seasons, so this could be anyone’s game here. On the team side Herscher, the 8th-ranked team in 1A, is the clear favorite. In a regional, a simulated 50 point gap is h

Week 8 Team Rankings 3A Boys New Team Old 1 Plainfield South 1 2 Downers Grove North 5 3 Winnetka (New Trier) 2 4 Palatine (Fremd) 3 5 Elmhurst (York) 4 6 Frankfort (Lincoln-Way East) 7 7 Hinsdale Central 15 8 Mt. Prospect (Prospect) 6 9 St. Charles North 8 10 Arlington Heights (Hersey) 9 11 Chicago (Lane) 10 12 Naperville Central 13 13 Park Ridge (Maine South) 16 14 Plainfield North 14 15 Lake Zurich 11 16 Chicago (Mather) 17 17 New Lenox (Lincoln-Way Central) 20 18 Napervil

Week 8 Individual Rankings 3A Boys New Name Grade Team Old 1 Santiago Chavez Sr Burbank (Reavis) 1 2 Samuel Hill Sr St. Charles North 2 3 Samuel Assefa Sr Chicago (Lane) 3 4 Dylan Buturusis Sr Plainfield South 4 5 Jesse Gudauskas Sr Naperville (Neuqua Valley) 5 6 Alex Batsala Sr Plainfield South 6 7 Karanveer Patil Jr Lake Zurich 7 8 David Moore Sr Palatine (Fremd) 8 9 Elliot Batz Sr Rock Island 10 10 Isaak Stein Sr Downers Grove North 11 11 Henry Miller Sr Hinsdale Central 1

It's time to vote for your weekly performers of the week! Something a little new this year will be a giveaway to our top weekly vote getter from a single week. Voting runs from Monday to Sunday so make sure to get your votes in! All previous winners will be listed below. Any athletes that use bots in order to get votes will be disqualified. Boys: Week 1: Santiago Chavez (Burbank [Reavis]) Week 2: Isaac Stein (Downers Grove [North]) Week 3: Cuyler Swanson (Morris) Week 4: Thom

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West Suburban Conference Silver Writer: Jackson Summy The WSC Silver is one of the strongest 3A conferences in the state, and it should be another exciting year of racing here. On the boys side, the individual race should be pretty close between a number of ranked runners. 3A #8 Patrick Hill of York is the narrow favorite coming into this race. He took second at the Richard Spring invite with a PR of 14:29 and he has been a dominant force in every race that he’s ran so far. 3

Conference week is here, and we're breaking down all of the friday action below! There are a couple good meets today, so read up and see who's the favorite to win their conference title around the state! Friday Southwest Prairie Conference Writer: Brayden Gaffud Boys Teams: 3A - #1 Plainfield (South), #14 Plainfield (North), #24 Yorkville, Bolingbrook, Joliet (Central), Joliet (West), Plainfield (Central), Plainfield (East), Minooka, Oswego, Oswego (East), Romeoville Girls T

The IESA Class 1A State Meet is set to bring together the top middle school cross country runners and teams from across Illinois for a championship weekend at Maxwell Park in Normal. After a season of conference meets, invitationals, and sectional competitions, the state's best runners will have one final opportunity to compete for individual titles and lead their teams to the podium. With rising young talents looking to make their mark and top teams hoping to cap off their s

The IESA 3A State Meet will bring together the top middle school cross country runners and teams from across Illinois at Maxwell Park in Normal. The individual races feature several returning state finishers and talented runners looking to earn state titles, while the team competitions include multiple programs with strong chances of reaching the podium. With individual championships and team trophies on the line, the Class 3A races will cap off the season for some of the sta

The IESA 4A State Meet will bring together the top middle school cross country runners and teams from across Illinois at Maxwell Park in Normal. The individual races feature undefeated runners, returning state medalists, and several athletes capable of challenging for state titles. On the team side, both the boys and girls competitions feature multiple contenders, setting up close battles for the championship and the remaining trophy spots. Girls Individuals The IESA Girls 4A

The IESA 2A State Meet will bring together the top middle school cross country runners and teams from across Illinois at Maxwell Park in Normal. The individual races feature several returning state finishers and runners coming off strong seasons, while the team competitions will determine which programs leave with state titles and trophies. With the season coming down to one race, the state's top Class 2A runners will compete for individual championships and team honors. Girl

Week 7 Individual Rankings 3A Boys New Name Grade Team Old 1 Santiago Chavez Sr Burbank (Reavis) 1 2 Samuel Hill Sr St. Charles North 2 3 Samuel Assefa Sr Chicago (Lane) 10 4 Dylan Buturusis Sr Plainfield South 3 5 Jesse Gudauskas Sr Naperville (Neuqua Valley) 4 6 Alex Batsala Sr Plainfield South 5 7 Karanveer Patil Jr Lake Zurich 6 8 David Moore Sr Palatine (Fremd) 7 9 Patrick Hill Jr Elmhurst (York) 8 10 Elliot Batz Sr Rock Island 9 11 Isaak Stein Sr Downers Grove North 19

Week 7 Team Rankings: 3A Boys New Team Old 1 Plainfield South 1 2 Winnetka (New Trier) 2 3 Palatine (Fremd) 3 4 Elmhurst (York) 4 5 Downers Grove North 5 6 Mt. Prospect (Prospect) 6 7 Frankfort (Lincoln-Way East) 7 8 St. Charles North 8 9 Arlington Heights (Hersey) 9 10 Chicago (Lane) 15 11 Lake Zurich 13 12 Naperville (Neuqua Valley) 11 13 Naperville Central 10 14 Plainfield North 12 15 Hinsdale Central 14 16 Park Ridge (Maine South) 16 17 Chicago (Mather) NR 18 Barrington 2